(Newser)
–
Capt. Richard Phillips' reunion with his crew and family may be delayed a bit because of yet another pirate attack. Somali pirates fired on another US ship today but failed to board it, CNN reports. That ship, the Liberty Sun, is now under the military escort of the USS Bainbridge—the same ship that rescued Phillips and is carrying him back to land. He's still due to fly back to the US sometime tomorrow, assuming the Bainbridge isn't diverted further.

"The pirates fired rocket-propelled grenades and automatic weapons at the vessel, which sustained damage," said a statement from Liberty Maritime Corporation in New York, which owns the Liberty Sun. An Illinois woman said her son is aboard the ship and emailed her news of the initial attack. About 90 minutes later, he told her the Navy had arrived and "all is well."

There is only one way this is going to end for the pirates and that is badly. The only way a weaker force can stand up to a much stronger, better equipped force is guerrilla/insurgency tactics which you can not perform in open water. Say goodnight Gracie, this will be over as soon as all of the different navies decide to cooperate; then these guys are toast.

Riffran

Apr 15, 2009 7:07 AM CDT

sounds like a job for satillite recon, and predators from an AC carrier, or similar mobile air platform, then send in a few AC-130's...oh yeah!

Mad

Apr 15, 2009 5:43 AM CDT

Two words: Barbed Wire. Several rings of barbed wire wrapped around the keel would stop any smaller boat from boarding. I like the idea of armed commandos every 8th ship, too